


Hat Figured it Out First (7 years old)

by The_Cecilia_Egg



Series: Paternal Instincts (How to Raise Your Halfling Boys and Navigate Other Disasters) [18]
Category: Bendy and the Ink Machine, Villainous (Cartoon), bendy and boris in the inky mystery - Fandom
Genre: F/M, Growing Up, Halflings, Hat being Hat, Takes place after Inky Mystery, Talents
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:48:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26005183
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Cecilia_Egg/pseuds/The_Cecilia_Egg
Summary: Hat has carefully been observing Dante, which leads to him to figure it out before anyone else. Dante included.
Relationships: Alice Angel/Bendy (Bendy and the Ink Machine)
Series: Paternal Instincts (How to Raise Your Halfling Boys and Navigate Other Disasters) [18]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1863781
Comments: 4
Kudos: 26





	Hat Figured it Out First (7 years old)

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Bendy and Boris in The Inky Mystery](https://archiveofourown.org/works/10726146) by [Mercowe](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mercowe/pseuds/Mercowe), [ThisAnimatedPhantom](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThisAnimatedPhantom/pseuds/ThisAnimatedPhantom). 



> This takes place after [ThisAnimatedPhantom's](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThisAnimatedPhantom/pseuds/ThisAnimatedPhantom) and [Mercowe's](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mercowe/pseuds/Mercowe) [Inky Mystery](https://archiveofourown.org/works/10726146/chapters/23768241), an amazing fanfic, which I highly recommend.
> 
> Without further ado...

-Newborn-

Black Hat liked to pride himself on his senses and intelligence. His ability to observe and see what so many inexperienced and iditotic fools missed. Those foolish cup brothers hadn’t even known he was an item demon and they  _ lived _ with him. If not for the circumstances back then, they  _ never  _ would have.

He liked knowing things others didn’t. It was something valuable. Something to hold over them. Bargain with. Knowledge was better currency than gold any day.

Regardless, when his now former fledgling had a child, he’d have been lying if he hadn't been interested. Bendy not only grew up on the surface and had remarkable control through his ‘demon puberty’ as he so dubbed the fledgling stage. The demon married an archangel! Yes, she was fallen, though still quite a feat.

Of course he went to see their hybrid child. He would be a fool not to. In part curious if they were really a halfling or just a child the demon and angel adopted into their ever expanding family of misfits.

The boy, Dante they named him, was in fact a hybrid. Part archangel, part high demon. Both parts supported each other in harmony, which had the older demon intrigued. Dante could legally live on the surface due to his angelic half but could have all the power of a demon. Fascinating.

He was a step forward for demon kind, whether he knew it or not. Doubtful he did as he was still a youngling and wouldn’t survive without his parents. Though, that wasn’t unusual. Still,  _ if  _ he survived that meant great things for his fellow demons below. Endless possibilities.

A demon and angel wed, from love. They bore a child, from love. This proved the two could co-exist. The Upper’s claims wouldn't work forever and here was solid proof right before the demon lord. Hat just needed to make sure the boy reached adulthood to prove it to the insufferable featherheads. 

Raising the dishes had been easy enough. Cuphead only died  _ once _ and still lived a relatively... _ functioning _ ...life. Though it didn’t truly matter, he was not raising the halfling. All he was doing was ensuring his survival and competency. It couldn't be too difficult. 

-Five Months-

When Hat caught wind of Alice searching for a job she could bring her son with, he seized the opportunity to host her. Having the boy closer would make observation easier. He made it clear to 5.0.5 to watch the child while she performed, and for some reason Demencia decorated Alice’s soon to be dressing room with all sorts of useless things.

While, no, he didn’t entirely know how angels raised their young, he did know how demons did. Typically a community to ensure the child's survival. A private space for parents or mates to spend time and bond with their young. A dark and defensible palace, easy to fortify. Not to mentions food and water. That was just the basics.

Oddly, Demecia and Flug scoffed at his words. Both of them. At  _ him. _

Demencia insisted the room needed a crib for an infant, and the doctor prattle on about ‘mobiles’ for keeping the boy calm. 5.0.5 was for some infernal reason trying to sneak toys in the room. The demon sighed, he had more important things to see to. He didn’t care what they did so long as Alice stayed. 

No, he wasn’t fond of having the angel back but he needed a singer, and she was acceptable. Dante being closer meant he could be exposed to other demons auras and get used to them. It was important for a younglings development...not that either of his parents knew that.

Things were actually going well enough in the beginning. Alice showed up true to her word and brought the boy. He was remarkably healthy for his age, no signs of being malnourished or dehydrated. He seemed to be semi-adjusted to auras, warily watching him.

Already able to attempt to decipher an ally from an enemy. Impressive, if not ahead for normal development of a youngling. Perhaps angels awoke to this instinct early as well? Alice seemed unsettled by his observations but said nothing. Instead, she pinched herself.  _ Angels. _

Everything was going well, Alice singing her first number and the crowd pleased. Pleased patrons meant more business. Hat knew the moment he spied 5.0.5 across the casino in a panic something was wrong. How did the bear mess up a simple task already? 

He went to berate the creature when a shrill whistle shrieked in his ears. Hat could already feel his instincts trying to take over, his body shifting with each movement towards the cries. By the time he made it to the pathetic surface dweller and snatched the boy from him, he was boiling with rage.

Stealing a youngling, right under his nose? The  _ audacity! _

To say he lost his temper would have been an understatement. Alice didn’t take well to her son being taken, he doubted any mother would. Angel or demon. He had Dementia deal with the man while he calmed down. Last thing he needed to do was repair half the casino from a rampage.

Alice stayed and performed for the rest of the day. Hat used the opportunity between songs to see what the young woman knew about younglings, which was to say nothing. Apparently neither did Bendy. They knew nothing at all and somehow their child was still thriving.

He went over basic communication with her but she seemed caught up in the ‘cooing’. He resisted the urge to break something and push through it. The more she knew, the better chance for the halfling’s survival. He doubted she would remember to relay everything to Bendy but his instincts should pick up...sooner or later. 

-Two years old-

Hat enjoyed observing the boy as he grew. He was oddly like demonic children, instead of angelic. From his overall quiet nature to his whistles. It was odd though that the boy did not attempt to communicate properly with his parents, not even by a youngling’s standards. He would only stare at them for hours on end until they eventually guessed what the boy wanted. 

It was...tiresome and inefficient to say the least.

He knew Dante was capable of whistling and chirping, so why wasn’t he signaling for food or anything else he needed? It did not make any sense to the demon lord. His curiosity got the better of him and he tried talking with the boy. Maybe his parents could not understand him despite his advice.

Bendy was not exactly a stellar example of a high demon. Then again, he grew up on the surface. The advice he left with Alice had had some measure of success but it only went so far. Hat approached the young boy, staring down at him. The boy was not frightened in any sense nor surprised. Odd considering they had only met a handful of times. Come to think of it, that may be due to the chirping. He likely still saw him as ‘safe’. Useful.

“Well, what do you have to say for yourself, tiny one?” Hat arched a brow at the boy, who stared blankly back. The demon lord frowned when the boy did not make any movements or noises. Demon children at this age mostly spoke in noises but he mainly spoke when in danger. Perhaps the angelic nature was messing with this part of his development?

Then he felt it. It was weak but the older demon could feel a faint sense of hunger. He stepped away from the boy and it faded. He stepped closer and it grew. The boy only stared at him, unmoving. Hat could not stop his fanged grin from spreading across his features. 

“You are hungry, correct?” He now felt a sense of accomplishment from the child. It was some form of  _ mental _ communication! No wonder his parents were unable to understand him, though not due to a lack of trying. Hat would give them credit there. The couple most likely were unable to differentiate his output from their own emotional turmoil.

He smirked as the boy’s mother returned with a full sippy cup. “He’s hungry.” The demon advised before leaving. How very interesting. Hat did not recall that being a demonic trait...perhaps angelic one? He would have to do more research on the subject. Brush up on his limited knowledge of their physiology.

-Four years old-

They were celebrating the boy’s fourth successful year of life. A good excuse to check in on his likelihood of survival and development. Hat cared little for the angels attending but they could not act against him here, at least, not in the open. He was within his rights and liked watching them squirm.

A shame Alice and her thin winged friend, Jane or whatever, were not phased by his presence anymore. He missed frightening them both, the sweet scent of fear in the air. Now the only sweet smell in the Angel household was whatever dreadful treat they were using to celebrate the boys consecutive year of life.

Hat made his way to the boy, who was currently absorbed in his own world. He clearly could pick up on their emotions and was reacting appropriately. Angelic trait...a useful one at that. He wondered if he could devise a test to see if he picked up on fear… Entirely feasible.

“Tell me what’s going through your mind, tiny one.” The older demon mused, looking down on him. The boy picked up his toy fox and held it close. The demon saw flickers of memories before his eyes, none his own. Emotions and fragmented thoughts, though jumbled together making it indiscernible besides the forceful imagery. All involving things with the toy, though mainly games. 

“Fascinating.” Hat murmured to himself, stepping away blinking rapidly. He left the child alone for the rest of the party. The boy waved farewell to him as he stalked off. Angels could tamper with memories...so could some demons...but Bendy was not that type nor did Alice show an aptitude for that craft.

Not an angelic or demonic trait...perhaps something new? He would have to observe carefully though. Getting tangled with creatures of mental abilities was not always the wisest or safest thing to do. He would need to tread lightly here. No sense in possibly endangering himself.

Hat had fully intended to leave the party after ‘speaking’ with the boy but he was pleasantly surprised by staying. An accidental backhanded comment to three of the council's archangels when Dante spoke his first words. Not a terrible way to spend an evening. He even laughed at their shame, the winged fools making a hasty exit.

Perhaps the surface was on to something with these annual celebrations…

-Six years old-

The boy was becoming a fledgling, despite still being a youngling. Strange but not unheard of. His angelic half was making the transition smoother, likely what started it earlier to begin with. To a certain extent the boy’s halo was preventing a frenzy by absorbing a fair amount of the excess magic from his emotional and magical surges. That could be a possible solution to their beastly situation below. Halos. Hat never would have considered it before seeing it with his own eyes.

He should have kept all those starfallen halos...

That aside, the boy seemed able to smell fear  _ and  _ pick up emotions. Very useful for drawing up contracts or sizing up prey. A shame they were not teaching the child to fight. He would do much better than his father had. Most likely be able to  _ easily  _ kill a beastly demon with his magic, provided he could direct it properly.

Another oddity he noticed, however, was when the boy was ‘studying’. He was sitting at his desk and reached for a book on his shelf. However he was across the room, nowhere near the bookshelf. The book floated sloppily off the shelf and to his tiny grasp. Hat watched the boy flip the book open as another picked itself off his desk and roughly slammed back into its spot on the shelf.

The older demon took note of other things moving sloppily over the room. Some fell to the floor but rose back up. The boy was practising whatever this was… If he could speed it up and perfect his aim it would be invaluable in combat. Perhaps he could try and convince Alice and Bendy to let him be the boy’s mentor.

Unlikely, but not entirely impossible. He would have to bide his time for that one though.

-Six years old-

Alice had another child. Another Halfling. Another boy.

Hat was interested in the other halfling as well but he seemed more vocal than her other youth. He certainly interested in the potential of the other halfling child. More evidence to support his claims and make a persuasive argument. The more he procured, the better chances for the denizens in his home below.

Perhaps he could convince his former fledgling to allow him to regularly check in on the children and monitor their health. He could keep an eye on the two and ensure his findings were not tampered with. Their survival was paramount for his research. Sighing, the demon lord straightened himself glaring at the gift in his hands.

He hated this but it would be more than worth it the long run.

-Seven years old-

Hat wanted to strangle Bendy with every fiber of his being.

The fool did  _ not _ want his  _ fledgling  _ son on a contract or be under another demon. Yes, the boy was rudimentarily educated on demonic culture...mainly through Hat’s own books gifted to the boy. His mother had done a fair job educating him on the outline of angelic culture. 

_ However _ , if the boy was to properly mature he needed a mentor. It was frustrating the older demon to no end seeing the boy struggle horribly with his magical fluxes. His halo was working against him now. Storing up vast amounts of magic but no way to properly release it. 

If not for Cuphead and the Holly girl, the boy likely would have gone on a rampage by now. Holly’s ‘spells’ helped alleviate just enough that he did not go mad. Cuphead would subdue the boy if he got close to a rampage and came up with ‘exercises’ to keep the boy’s energy ‘low’. The longer Dante went unchecked, the more it became a matter of ‘when’, not ‘if’. This was not enough!

A rampaging wild halfling did not prove his point of coexistence.

Yes, he was allowed to periodically drop by and monitor both halflings. The younger one, Eddie, was in excellent health for a youngling and should grow up to be strong. Dante, the older boy, going through his fledgling stage was not. The overwhelming magical stores the boy had and no way to release enough of it was causing undue stress.

His halo was stopping a full frenzy but just barely. If he did not get a proper mentor soon or found a better exercise he would, halo or not. Hat tried to get Bendy and Alice on separate occasions to consider looking into potential mentors. He did not even waste his breath offering his services. 

They would never agree, even if he met all their ridiculous commands. Unlikely any true demon actually would. Dante had to remain on the surface, no being taken to hell, no killing, no soul contracts, the list went on and on. Picking and choosing half his heritage. Yes, there were possibly parts of demonhood the boy wouldn’t be capable of but he still needed to learn.

As disdainful as he was of angels, Hat would admit the boy needed to understand their culture as well...featherheads.

When the demon lord dropped by at this particular time, Alice mentioned Dante kept complaining of headaches and would rarely leave the house if not forced. He checked on the boy who was suffering from intense migraines for a boy his age. Alice insisted his vision had been checked and came back perfect, so she was lost on the problem.

Hat quietly observed Dante for the remainder of the evening and he caught a glimpse of the issue at hand. The young man was reading a book on surface history, snapping it shut upon completion. As previously seen the book floated, though more smoothly this time, back to it’s shelf. Another started to pull out and move over.

Dante winced, grabbing his head as his frustration briefly surged. The book dropped to the floor with a resounding thud. The boy was not using magic...Hat would have sensed it. It could not be related to his heritage, he poured over all the possible potential there. The older demon slowly realized what was giving the child trouble.

A talent.

Levitation alone would be magical and help use up some of his pent up stores. A talent would explain the distress but not how it worked per say. His migraines were more than likely due to practice or overuse. More than likely some form a telekinesis...that may explain his early upbringing too... How that related to the boy’s personality or sense of self was beyond him.

Still, useful, nevertheless. Just another thing to keep an eye on.

-Seven years old-

Hat was certain something was wrong with Dante, or at the very least his talent. Every time he visited the boy lately he was isolated or clutching his head on the verge of tears. Hiding it very carefully from his family but the other halfling, Eddie, was picking up on the stress.

His plans did not involve either of the halfling’s dying. Hat was fed up. The boy needed a mentor and  _ still _ didn’t have one. His control was remarkable as it was resilient, but it was waning. Any day now he would go beastly and likely destroy everything for several blocks. Hat could not allow it.

Perhaps he was overstepping his boundaries but it was necessary. When he barged in the boy’s room his eyes were bright, curled in on himself. Objects flying across the room, his window creaking as cracks spread in a web-like pattern across the glass. Hat sighed as fear rolled off the boy in waves. He was scared of himself. Scared of power. It was pathetic and unsuitable for a demon...even a half demon.

The demon lord promptly walked over to the boy, flinching as images assaulted his mind, making him step back. The items came to a stop and dropped to the floor as Dante uncurled slightly. His demonic abilities seemed to be adversely affecting his talent. Straightening himself, he stepped closer to the halfling.

“Have you told either of them?” The question hung in the air, until the boy shook his dark locks in a resounding ‘no’. “You should.” He shook his head again. Why, why were children so insufferable!? It was the logical choice to express his issues to his caretakers in place of a mentor. “Why?” His patience was wearing thin.

“I’m supposed to handle it, Mr. Hat.” The child spit out frustrated, curling his fingers in his hair. “Every book I’ve read says I should be able to handle this! This is  _ normal _ and I’m  _ failing!  _ I know this so I don’t understand why!?” He slammed his tiny fists in the floor. “Why does nothing I do  _ work?!” _

“You lack a mentor and a magical outlet.” Hat replied bluntly, resting his hands behind his back. The factors were not currently in the boys favor, he should know enough to tip them back. No, Hat could not do it himself or Bendy would have a fit. All he could do is give advice and observe.

“I do magic with Aunt Holly!” The boy threw up his hands agitated. Hat resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

“ _ Demonic _ magic...or more powerful spells.” The elder corrected. “You are not using up enough of your stores.” Dante went to say something else but the demon lord’s time was precious and it was not to be wasted. “You do not have a mentor teaching you these things, nor monitoring your health or progress. Not to mention your talent-”

“I don't have talent.” Dante interrupted. “Not yet.” Hat stared at the boy, words of his lecture dying off. What. He blinked wordlessly looking at the frustrated child.  _ What!? _ “Mom says sometimes magical beings don’t learn their talents and it’s nothing to be ashamed of.” Dante elaborated, calming down. The crimson glow in his eyes now fully faded.

“You-!” Hat pointed at the halfling, who looked lost. “You were just using your talent!” The latter perked up.

“I was?!” He looked excited, tail wagging like a pup’s. Hat growled, raking his claws down his face, tempted to rip it off from frustration. “What was it? How does it work? Is it when my eyes glow? Mr. Hat? Hello? ...Mr. Hat? Uhh...are you alright?” The older demon let out a long groan.

It was going to be a long day. He was getting too old for this stardust...


End file.
